Chargers Come Back Late To Sweep Indians

Varsity Men's Basketball : Northumberland Indians vs. Chancellor Chargers

Thursday night's match-up between the Chancellor Chargers (2-2) and Northumberland Indians (0-3) almost felt like a Friday night football game. Two stars from the fall season, Yetur Matos and E.J. Jenkins, combined for 33 points on the night to help their team battle from behind and sweep the season series against the Indians. Down by four at the half, the Chargers were able to storm back to a 77 - 67 victory.

Both teams in the first quarter looked a bit off, as shooting was a problem for both teams. The Indians showed command early, and they kept the gym quiet by downing three 3-Point Shots to give an early lead. The Chargers regrouped behind Omair Shah who posted an energizing three-pointer, and they were able to close the first quarter only down by one. Jenkins also showed his menacing presence underneath the net, with a block that knocked an Indian to his butt. Going into the second quarter, the Chargers trailed 16 - 15.

The action didn't stand by and wait headed into the second, as both teams struggled to maintain any sort of lead. C.J. Washington played notably well, setting the court for the Chargers multiple times by passing to all sides of the court to stretch the Indians' defense. Jenkins brought even more power into the quarter, as he found separation and was all alone with the net where he jumped and slammed in a dunk that echoed off the walls and sent the stands into a frenzy.

This energized the Chargers who were still struggling shooting on the night, and after this those shooting woes went away. Josiah Jones and Jason Brown found more action, as Jones knocked in three field goals while Brown came down with multiple offensive and defensive rebounds to set his team up for more points. Most notably of all however, had to be just as the first half ended. Everyone expected the Chargers to head into the half with a tie, but Michael Freeman had other ideas as he shot from the half court line and made the 3-Point Shot. The crowd, and I, burst into excitement jumping up and down as the Chargers would head into the second half with a 36 - 33 lead.

The second half wouldn't start out the way the Chargers had hoped to coming out of an energized first half. Their shooting percentage dropped and turnovers rose, but that didn't stop them from still finding the net and keeping the Indians in check. It was Jenkins again, who late in the third twisted around and tossed the ball from behind his back to find the net and two points for his team. Northumberland only scored four points after this shot with 4 minutes to play, and it allowed the Chargers to climb back and only trail 57 - 53 headed into the final quarter.

The fourth quarter of the game, especially late, was purely dominated by the Chargers. All sides of the ball started to click, and the Indians started to struggle with shooting. Matos sparked a fire late, with 8 consecutive personal points, that helped his team build momentum and eventually stomp over the Indians late. Nine second half turnovers were a distant memory, as ball control became key and all players kept things tight. To cap off an incredible night and send the home crowd home even more happy, Jenkins was alone with the net again and similar to earlier in the game he crushed a dunk for points. The final score would round out to be 77 - 67, with five Chargers finishing with double digit points.

This win will be big for the Chargers as they look to build momentum going into a home stretch that features games against Colonial Forge, Massaponax, and Mountain View. They also saw much improvement tonight, with big performances all around. Though they did turn the ball over 17 times, they did collect 41 total rebounds, outpacing the Indians by 31.

Notables

• Field Goals : Northumberland - 50% (22/44), Leader was No. 2 who shot for 58% (7/12). Chancellor - 48% (29/61), Leader was E.J. Jenkins who shot for 53% (10/19).
• 3-Point Goals : Northumberland - 38% (6/15), Leader was No. 3 who shot for 50% (3/6). Chancellor - 31% (4/13), Leader was Omair Shah who shot for 50% (2/4).
• Free Throws : Northumberland - 50% (7/14), Leader was No. 00 who shot for 100% (4/4). Chancellor - 70% (7/10), Leader was Jason Brown who shot for 100% (4/4).
• Rebounds : Northumberland - 10 Total (6 Defensive, 4 Offensive). Chancellor - 41 (22 Defensive, 19 Offensive).
• Turnovers : Northumberland - 15 Total, 11 in first half. Chancellor - 17 total, 8 in first half.